[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37886-37888]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16505]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2019-D-2837]


Testing and Labeling Medical Devices for Safety in the Magnetic 
Resonance Environment; Draft Guidance for Industry and Food and Drug 
Administration Staff; Availability

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or Agency) is announcing 
the availability of the draft guidance entitled ``Testing and Labeling 
Medical Devices for Safety in the Magnetic Resonance (MR) 
Environment.'' FDA developed this draft guidance to provide FDA's 
recommendations on the testing needed for assessing the safety and 
compatibility of medical devices in the Magnetic Resonance (MR) 
Environment and the recommended format for Magnetic Resonance Imaging 
(MRI) Safety Information in medical device labeling. This draft 
guidance document is anticipated to aid in consistency of reviews, 
testing, and MRI safety labeling across a variety of medical devices. 
This draft guidance is not final nor is it in effect at this time.

DATES: Submit either electronic or written comments on the draft 
guidance by October 1, 2019 to ensure that the Agency considers your 
comment on this draft guidance before it begins work on the final 
version of the guidance.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on any guidance at any time as 
follows:

Electronic Submissions

    Submit electronic comments in the following way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Comments submitted 
electronically, including attachments, to https://www.regulations.gov 
will be posted to

[[Page 37887]]

the docket unchanged. Because your comment will be made public, you are 
solely responsible for ensuring that your comment does not include any 
confidential information that you or a third party may not wish to be 
posted, such as medical information, your or anyone else's Social 
Security number, or confidential business information, such as a 
manufacturing process. Please note that if you include your name, 
contact information, or other information that identifies you in the 
body of your comments, that information will be posted on https://www.regulations.gov.
     If you want to submit a comment with confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, 
submit the comment as a written/paper submission and in the manner 
detailed (see ``Written/Paper Submissions'' and ``Instructions'').

Written/Paper Submissions

    Submit written/paper submissions as follows:
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier (for written/paper 
submissions): Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug 
Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
     For written/paper comments submitted to the Dockets 
Management Staff, FDA will post your comment, as well as any 
attachments, except for information submitted, marked and identified, 
as confidential, if submitted as detailed in ``Instructions.''
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket No. 
FDA-2019-D-2837 for ``Testing and Labeling Medical Devices for Safety 
in the Magnetic Resonance (MR) Environment.'' Received comments will be 
placed in the docket and, except for those submitted as ``Confidential 
Submissions,'' publicly viewable at https://www.regulations.gov or at 
the Dockets Management Staff between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through 
Friday.
     Confidential Submissions--To submit a comment with 
confidential information that you do not wish to be made publicly 
available, submit your comments only as a written/paper submission. You 
should submit two copies total. One copy will include the information 
you claim to be confidential with a heading or cover note that states 
``THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.'' The Agency will 
review this copy, including the claimed confidential information, in 
its consideration of comments. The second copy, which will have the 
claimed confidential information redacted/blacked out, will be 
available for public viewing and posted on https://www.regulations.gov. 
Submit both copies to the Dockets Management Staff. If you do not wish 
your name and contact information to be made publicly available, you 
can provide this information on the cover sheet and not in the body of 
your comments and you must identify this information as 
``confidential.'' Any information marked as ``confidential'' will not 
be disclosed except in accordance with 21 CFR 10.20 and other 
applicable disclosure law. For more information about FDA's posting of 
comments to public dockets, see 80 FR 56469, September 18, 2015, or 
access the information at: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-09-18/pdf/2015-23389.pdf.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
the electronic and written/paper comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov and insert the docket number, found in brackets in 
the heading of this document, into the ``Search'' box and follow the 
prompts and/or go to the Dockets Management Staff, 5630 Fishers Lane, 
Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
    You may submit comments on any guidance at any time (see 21 CFR 
10.115(g)(5)).
    An electronic copy of the guidance document is available for 
download from the internet. See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section 
for information on electronic access to the guidance. Submit written 
requests for a single hard copy of the draft guidance document entitled 
``Testing and Labeling Medical Devices for Safety in the Magnetic 
Resonance (MR) Environment'' to the Office of Policy, Guidance and 
Policy Development, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Food 
and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 66, Rm. 5431, 
Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002. Send one self-addressed adhesive label to 
assist that office in processing your request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terry Woods, Center for Devices and 
Radiological Health, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire 
Ave., Bldg. 62, Rm. 2116, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, 301-796-2503.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    The MR Environment presents unique safety hazards for patients and 
other persons with devices near or inside an MR system. Ensuring safety 
and effectiveness for a medical device intended to enter the MR 
Environment should be an integral part of the device risk management. 
Appropriate testing and labeling, such as well supported MR Conditional 
labeling, should form the basis of adequate mitigations for the unique 
safety hazards in the MR Environment. This guidance document outlines 
FDA's current thinking on the testing needed for assessing the safety 
and compatibility of medical devices in the MR Environment and the 
recommended format for MRI Safety Information in device labeling.

II. Significance of Guidance

    This draft guidance is being issued consistent with FDA's good 
guidance practices regulation (21 CFR 10.115). The draft guidance, when 
finalized, will represent the current thinking of FDA on ``Testing and 
Labeling Medical Devices for Safety in the Magnetic Resonance (MR) 
Environment.'' It does not establish any rights for any person and is 
not binding on FDA or the public. You can use an alternative approach 
if it satisfies the requirements of the applicable statutes and 
regulations. This guidance is not subject to Executive Order 12866.

III. Electronic Access

    Persons interested in obtaining a copy of the draft guidance may do 
so by downloading an electronic copy from the internet. A search 
capability for all Center for Devices and Radiological Health guidance 
documents is available at https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/device-advice-comprehensive-regulatory-assistance/guidance-documents-medical-devices-and-radiation-emitting-products. This guidance document is also 
available at https://www.regulations.gov. Persons unable to download an 
electronic copy of ``Testing and Labeling Medical Devices for Safety in 
the Magnetic Resonance (MR) Environment'' may send an email request to 
[email protected] to receive an electronic copy of the 
document. Please use the document number 1500059 to identify the 
guidance you are requesting.

IV. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    This draft guidance refers to previously approved collections of 
information. These collections of information are subject to review by 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The collections of information in 
the following FDA regulations and guidance have been approved by OMB as 
listed in the following table:

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                                                            OMB control
      21 CFR part or guidance               Topic               No.
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807, subpart E....................  Premarket                  0910-0120
                                     notification.
814, subparts A through E.........  Premarket approval..       0910-0231
814, subpart H....................  Humanitarian Device        0910-0332
                                     Exemption.
812...............................  Investigational            0910-0078
                                     Device Exemption.
``De Novo Classification Process    De Novo                    0910-0844
 (Evaluation of Automatic Class      classification
 III Designation)''.                 process.
``Requests for Feedback on Medical  Q-Submissions.......       0910-0756
 Device Submissions: The Pre-
 Submission Program and Meetings
 with Food and Drug Administration
 Staff''.
801 and 809.......................  Medical Device             0910-0485
                                     Labeling
                                     Regulations.
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    Dated: July 29, 2019.
Lowell J. Schiller,
Principal Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2019-16505 Filed 8-1-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4164-01-P